October Senior Newsletter
Good Afternoon, Seniors!
October is jam packed with events and information. There are college fairs, FAFSA information starts coming out, fair break is around the corner, OMJ Job Fairs and a couple of college information sessions will all be taking place. Let’s dive straight into the information!
Fairfield County College Fair
The Fairfield County College Fair takes place tomorrow, Thursday, October 3rd, from 6:00pm to 8:00pm at Ohio University Lancaster! High school students and their parents are invited to visit approximately 100 different colleges as well as attend a financial aid presentation at 6:00 or 6:30 in the auditorium.
Registration is required. Students can register through www.StriveFair.com. When registering, make sure to check the "Text me my Barcode" box. With the received barcode, during the college fair, students can have colleges they are interested in scan their barcode. The day after the fair, students will receive a report with information on the colleges that were scanned.
Southeast Ohio College Fair
There is another college fair towards the end of the month! Hocking College is hosting the Southeast Ohio College Fair on October 21, 2024 from 10:00 am - 12:00 pm. The SOCF will occur at the Hocking College Student Activities Center.
“The Southeast Ohio College Fair is an exceptional opportunity for high school students to discover a wide range of educational possibilities. Representatives from various colleges and universities will be present to provide valuable information about their institutions, academic programs, admission requirements, scholarships, and much more.”
Hocking College asks that you RSVP through 2024 Southeast College Fair Registration.
FAFSA Intro
The odds of a student going to college goes up drastically when FAFSA is completed. What is FAFSA? FAFSA is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Essentially, it is a form completed by students/families in order to receive financial aid from the government to help pay for college.
“Each year, over 13 million students who file the FAFSA get more than $120 billion in grants, work-study, and low-interest loans from the U.S. Department of Education”.
FAFSA - Opening Details & Note From Ohio University
On the topic of FAFSA, Ohio University has sent BCHS this note to share: “While the FAFSA has typically been available October 1 each year, the U.S. Department of Education has announced that the 2025-2026 FAFSA will open for testing in October 2024 and to all students and families by December 1, 2024. To allow students and their families time to complete the FAFSA, OHIO has adjusted its first-priority date to February 15, 2024. Students should plan to submit the FAFSA so that OHIO will receive the results by this date to ensure best consideration for federal, state and institutional aid. Financial Aid Offers are anticipated to begin in March 2025. Incoming freshmen and transfer students will receive a printed Financial Aid Offer via mail.”
If you would like to stay informed on the FAFSA opening date and other information, you can visit Federal Student Aid’s website by clicking here.
Explore Ohio: Destination Lancaster
Ohio University Lancaster is hosting an “in-person visit program designed for prospective first-year students.” The event is called Explore Ohio: Destination Lancaster. The event will be held on “Friday, October 18th from 9:00AM-12:00PM…We will have prizes and serve lunch; therefore, pre-registration is required. Campus visit forms will be available for students to pick up to share with their school to receive an excused absence (please check with your counselor to see if your school is bringing a group on campus).”
Register for Explore OHIO: Destination Lancaster
If you plan to attend, please make sure you complete the college visit form in advance so you would be excused from school for Explore Ohio.
Columbus State Information Sessions
Columbus State University will be hosting a series of information sessions for both students and parents. These sessions will provide valuable insights into the university's programs, admissions process, and financial aid opportunities. There are many information sessions scheduled, and they are broken down by general college information, campus location and program.
Due to the number and variety of sessions, it should make finding a time to visit more convenient to your schedule. Attending these sessions can greatly assist your student in making informed decisions about their future education. Families can see all information session dates by visiting the Columbus State's Webpage here.
College Applications | Planning & Quick Tips
Some of the steps to completing an application include: performing your own research & asking questions, requesting a copy of your own transcript, getting letters of recommendation, inviting Mr. Kelley to the Common App, filling the application out, etc. Each step takes time. Attempting to crank all of this out in a time period of a couple days, let alone a couple of weeks, may result in your application not being completed in time.
Tip: Know when your application needs to be completed and expect it to take a lot longer than what you may think (a month is a good timeline for everything).
More on this topic in November’s Newsletter.
Ohio Means Jobs Career Fair
Thinking about going directly into the workforce (Employment) directly after high school but not sure where to apply? Ohio Means Jobs has Career Fairs throughout the school year. Some of OMJ’s Career Fairs are in-person while others are virtual. To explore the what, when and where of OMJ’s Career Fairs, click here.
Deadlines
Senior year deadlines become much more important. Whether you are going into Employment, Enlisting in the military, or Enrolling in college, your post secondary (high school) plans hinge on your ability to meet deadlines.
Unlike some assignments you have had in high school, many deadlines in the world beyond high school are non-negotiable; when the deadline closes, you are out. Please do not miss out on any opportunities because you missed a deadline. Tip: create reminders and appointments that notify you of the upcoming deadlines so you do not forget.
Caps and Gowns
If you have not already ordered your cap and gown, you can do so online at Jostens website. This link will take you to the BCHS portion of Jostens website. If you are a student at the career center, please check your email as the career center has sent out information regarding how to order your cap and gown.
Requesting Transcripts
If you need a transcript for personal records or to be sent to a college, you can do that electronically by visiting Bloom-Carroll's website and clicking on "Forms" (or click here). Then, under "High School" you will see "Transcript Request-Current Students Only." You will need to complete the transcript request every time you want a transcript sent to a college. BCHS processes transcripts in one to two business days.
Note: You will most likely need a copy of your transcript in front of you when applying to college as many of the questions relate back to records that you will find on your transcript (GPA,Class Rank, etc).
Common App Transcript Request Exception: As long as you invite Mr. Kelley to your CA, then you do NOT need to complete a transcript request (for any school listed within your CA). However, it is still recommended that you complete a transcript request for CA because if something goes wrong (email address is spelled wrong within CA, etc), then the invite will end up lost electronically and the counseling office will not know about it. In short, completing the transcript request form AND sending an invite through CA ensures your CA is completed appropriately.
College/Future Search
There are a ton of college and technical schools in the United States. You have preferences as to what you are looking for in a technical school: e.g. major, price, on-campus housing, etc. Trying to match all of your preferences to a college may feel daunting. Using college-matching websites can help ease the overwhelming feeling by making the computer do a lot of the work for you. Bigfuture is one college matching website. Give it a try: https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org
Similar to the college search, Roadtrip Nation can help match your interests with careers. Additionally, Roadtrip Nation maps a plan to obtain that career. Check it out: https://roadtripnation.com/
College Application Types
Quick review and reminder, application types generally include: early action, early decision, regular decision, and rolling admission. Keep in mind that early decision is binding, meaning if that college accepts your early decision, you are obligated to go to that college. To read about the details of each application type, click here.
FYI - Many early action deadlines are in November: e.g. Ohio State University’s early action deadline is November 1st, and Ohio University’s early action deadline is November 15th